"CAP" tivating Haitian Adventure

Thursday, August 4, 2016

As my educational leave comes to an end and my last trip to Haiti..for now is behind me, I have so many thoughts!

These two pictures speak volumes about where I began and where I am heading in terms of supporting education in Haiti.

The BLANC teaching the Haitians

The HAITIAN teaching the future generation of HAITIANS!

The first picture was taken in June of 2013 on my first trip to Haiti. I worked with elementary school -aged boys and girls that were raised in a orphanage. The second was taken in June of this year, at a safe house for street kids who have essentially raised themselves until coming there.
Why do the two speak volumes? Well, in the first picture you can see me, "the BLANC" teaching these children. In the second picture you see a young Haitian man teaching. This young Haitian man, Josny Joseph, my "Haitian son" was living at the orphanage in the first picture in 2013. He has since "aged out" of the orphanage, found housing, sponsors, and now has a JOB teaching elementary school aged boys thanks to the Work Force program at Streethearts!

When I set out on this Haitian adventure, I had no idea what to expect, how I would serve, or how I might make a difference. These two pictures validate that I made some headway. My goal was not to go in and "fix" a broken system. My goal was to share my skills with Haitians who could in turn share those same skills with other Haitians and "pay it forward" in a sense. It took me four years to make this happen, but this summer trip was definitely a turning point.

In late April, A colleague sent me a memo about a teacher conference in Cap Haitian that provided professional development to local teachers. Since the dates coincided with my time already volunteering in Haiti, I inquired for more information. This conference was to be delivered to 200 Haitian teachers, and the general theme was Best Teaching Practices. I signed on, paired up with a fellow educator and prepared to present on the topic of formative assessment. Over three days, my colleague, Brenda Cohen and I shared our decades of experience and how it could be applicable to a Haitian classroom. Here are a few glimpses of what we were able to share.

Me, in the moment, discussing a formative assessment technique

This picture of the TravelingRoths (an example of formative assessment) was used so many times during the presentations.

English Class with the High Schoolers at

The older boys at Streethearts were fortunate to have English class twice a week this summer with Marckendy Joseph, another young man I can call my "Haitian son". I met Marckendy at an orphanage in Saint Louis du Nord four years ago. At the age of 18, he and any other 18 year old orphans were forced to leave even if they were not equipped with the basic skills needed to start life own their own. I am happy to report that four years later he is doing so well. He is part of the Work Force program at Streethearts, teaching English, and is provided with a salary for his efforts. I helped him to plan lessons and provided teaching techniques he could use for teaching English. The boys were very happy to share what they learned by speaking to Linsey, the CEO of Streethearts, and more importantly their Manman as well as to speak English to American visitors.

Health, Hygiene, and Devotions with the "Smalls"

Streethearts has seen a recent influx of younger boys ages 5-10 that need a special kind of attention. Fortunately I suggested a young man that has a passion for working with young kids and had been doing so at his church in Saint Louis du Nord. Josny Joseph, who I mentioned at the beginning of this post was just the right man for the job. He was responsible for ensuring that the "smalls" brushed teeth, bathed, and cleaned their rooms properly. He also provided a devotional lesson and taught English and French skills. He like Marckendy is also provided with a salary and is part of the Work Force program.

The "Bon Bagay" AKA, Everthing Else

Home Visits

French Basic Skills Assessments of boys recently off the street

Budgeting Class with the Work Force Boys

Field trip to a local Museum

Beach Time!

Final Thoughts

As I look back on this incredible experience I thank God and everyone in my life that made this experience possible. I went to share my skills as a teacher, a mother, and a friend. I walked away with so much more. I spent a month with boys that have survived unimaginable circumstances and risen above them. They have hope, determination, and a sense of faith I cannot find words to describe.

They tested me, taught me, loved me, and accepted me as a "regular" that they know they will see again soon. Thanks for rocking my world, Streethearts! Until next time...

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Cap-Haitien, Haiti January 18- February 23, 2016

by: Jennifer Roth,

Elementary School French Teacher

Mebane, North Carolina

cygne71@gmail.com

Pre-trip Thoughts:
On January 1, 2016 I began my six month educational leave from teaching French in Chapel Hill. The main purpose of the leave was to spend more time volunteering in a country that has captured my heart, Haiti.
I came up with a plan and connected with Linsey Jorgenson, founder of Streethearts, a safe haven for street kids in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. I was going to volunteer my time with a focus on educational support in French. I booked a flight and my five week adventure began on January 18th.

Acclimation to Culture:
My initial focus was to acclimate to local culture. The pace of life, process for buying groceries, getting around town, and simply managing daily living were the tasks at hand. I rented a furnished studio apartment with a kitchen. I hired a local moto driver named Robens Leclerc who turned out to be my right hand man throughout the trip!

Robens, left, me, Marckendy on right

My only other local connection was Marckendy Joseph, a former orphan I met on a mission trip several years ago. With both these young men by my side, I was able to make it through the first week with few tears.

Shopping for food was quite an adventure and I did not anticipate the amount of time it would take to merely pick up the basics! There is no such thing as a one stop shop like Wal-Mart of Target. I watched and learned the art of negotiating and discovered some new foods along the way.

Grenadia Giraumoun Marinade

I spent one morning with Emmanuelle Joseph, the exectitive director of education for the Streethearts program. We toured the three schools where the boys from Streethearts attend school. These visits were helpful in providing a glimpse of how education worked in Haiti. The three schools were very different. One, very structured with a well disciplined student body, one in the midst of renovations and the third which seemed more crowded and seemed to have a very needy, harder to manage student population.

Getting to know the Boys:

I went to the safe house to meet the kids, get to know them, and observe how the homework support time. I monitored individual students and watched as they recited from there textbooks. On Fridays I came up with some fun, bonding activities to help them feel more at ease with me as well as went to lunch with Linsey and a small group.

Place Setting Madness!

Lunch at Mont Joli

Pillowcase Volleyball!

As the week progressed I discussed the idea of 3 weekend field trips. The Streethearts staff would help me divide them into small groups and offer a fun weekend experience for all the boys.

Hike to Bassin Manbo

Paradise Beach Fun!

Little Kings for the Day

Ice cream sundaes

FLOAM creations

Hammock Time!

Fort Picolet Adventure

Haitian School Visits:As a veteran teacher, visiting local schools in Cap-Haitien was a must for me. Emmanuelle Joseph, the educational director at Streethearts was extremely helpful and organized visits to the three schools the boys at Streethearts attended.I initially felt overwhelmed by the number of students, the noise level and simply trying to process the learning taking place at the schools. After several meetings with Emmanuelle as well as some of the principals I requested to spend some more time at Institut de Grandeur de Dieu. I selected this school for several reasons.I was extremely impressed by the respect and classroom management skills of the teachers who had 30-45+ students in multi-aged classes. It was also clear that teachers had a very supportive principal, Jemme Joseph. He took time to meet with me to discuss the Haitian approach to teaching as well as spent time in the classes where I observed.Because my experience is with elementary school aged students, I requested to spend some more time in one classroom to see if there would be a possibility for some American/Haitian teaching collaboration.I met with Anne-Rose, who teaches the Kindergarten class including over thirty 3-5 year olds. I was impressed with her energy as well as her ability to keep students engaged. What I did notice not only in her class but also in all other classes where I observed was that there was an incredible amount of memorization and repetition. After class I met with Jemme and Anne-Rose to thank them for allowing me to observe and asked if there was any way that I may be able to support them professionally. Anne-Rose agreed to team teach with me and shared that week's learning objectives. The experience was unforgettable!

Next StepsI feel so incredibly fortunate to have spent five incredible weeks with what I consider to be my extended family at Streethearts. I plan to return later this spring and summer. I will work with teachers at Institut de Grandeur de Dieu to provide some staff development support. I will also share this opportunity with the tutors at Streethearts so that these incredible boys that came from inexplicable circumstances can be provided with the very best educational support that they deserve.